Shot-cartridge.



E. M. SWEELEY. SHOT CARTRIDGE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 9, 1912.

1,73,%0. Patented Sept. 23, 1913.

WITNESSES I/VI/E/VTOR M 4fl% A EW H ZZ JZJw'eZfy.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EVERETT M. SWEELEY, OF TWIN FALLS, IDAHO.

SHOT-CARTRIDGE.

ovaaao.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EVERE'I'I M. SWEELEY, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Twin Falls, in the county of Twin Falls and State of Idaho, have invented a new and Improved Sh0tCartridge, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates particularly to a shot cartridge, and the principal object of the invention is to prevent the escape of gas which takes place after firing, thereby securing much greater velocity to the shot discharged.

The invention is embodied in an expansible metal gas check or wad positioned between the powder and the projectile or projectiles; the shape of this check or wad is substantially circular, the peripheral portion thereof being provided with a flange extending at right angles from the plane of the top of the check or wad, this flange extending substantially parallel with the inside of the shell and the bore of the gun or rifle.

The invention is further characterized by the fact that the disk or Wad is cupshaped or depressed, so that, when the opposite side of the depressed portion is acted upon by the exploded charge, the Peripheral flange will closely engage the inside of the shell and also the bore of the gun or rifle, thereby preventing escape of the gases in front of the disk or wad, and also preventing injury to the inside of the gun, due to the hot gases, or to leading, due to the action of these gases on the shot when such is used.

A cartridge equipped with the wad or disk herein described and claimed is adapted for use in shot guns of any size or bore, or in rifles of any size or bore, it being immaterial whether the cartridges used embody a number of pellets or a single pellet, or whether the bores are grooved or smooth.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which similar. characters of reference denote corresponding parts in all the views, and in which Figure 1- is a longitudinal sectional view of a cartridge embodying the check or wad;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the wad;

while Fig. 3 is a modification showing the disk and the wadding suitably held together.

Any shell 1, of suitable dimensions and provided with the usual cap 2 and the Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed July 9, 1912.

Patented Sept. 23, 1913.

Serial No. 708,443.

powder charge 3, has the improved gas check or wad l positioned between the powder charge 3 and the pellets or projectiles 5, there being wadding 6 between the projectiles and the gas check.

It will be noted that the overturned peripheral flange 7 of the check or disk is in engagement with the inside of the shell 1 throughout the length of the flange, and that the depressed side of the check is adj acent the wadding.

The check is preferably of integral construction, and is'made from a circular piece of suitable material, after which it is stamped to the form shown; the depressed portion of the check is included between the peripheral flange 7, and there is a circular pocket 10 extending around the cheek and between the flange and the inclined wall of the said pocket. The provision of this depressed portion with the circular pocketis that when a force is applied to one side of the check by the exploding gas when the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 1, the application of such force will tend to bring the bottom of the depressed portion into the same plane as the top of said portion, which can only be brought about by an expansion of the check; that is, its diameter must be substantially increased. It is this peculiar construction of the check whereby the application of the force causes the peripheral flange to closely engage the inside of the shell or the bore of the gun.

After the shell has received the proper powder charge, the disk or check 4 is inserted, resting directly on the powder, the

pressure with Which the check or disk bears on the powder being applied, which pressure depends upon the powder used; on top of the disk, the usual wadding 6 is placed, and the projectile or pellets 5 are entered into the shell, after which the closure member 8 is inserted. The wadding 6 is not absolutely necessary to secure proper results, inasmuch as any element may be placed adjacent the disk or check in order or adjacent to the projectile or sht-charge, or confronting the wad 6, when one is used.

' The disk has on the opposite side adjacent minates in a free edge which forms one boundary of the annular depression 10. At the other end, this flange is continuous with the body of the disk'and forms an annular base near the periphery of the disk adapted to rest against the wad, or against the base of a single projectile, when one is used. The cylindrical flange 7, when used in a cartridge shell as shown in Fig. 1, fits the bore of the shell and when fired expands and fits the bore of the gun, as previouslv described. When used without a shell and with a single projectile, the cylindrical flange is adapted to primarily engage the bore of the gun.

The term projectile charge used in certain claims is intended to cover any shot charge, single projectile, or projectile casing carried above the check.

It is clear that the use of this gas check permits the application of suflicient pressure in loading the shell or arm to obtain the proper powder results and also permits of properly seating the projectile in the shell or arm without materially deforming it. The close fitting of the peripheral flange of the check is insured by the cup-shaped feature, whereby the application of pressure by the explosive charge to the check causes the peripheral flange to closely engage the bore of the arm or the inside of the shell.

Due to the fact that the check prevents the escape of powder gases past the projectile or projectiles in the barrel of,the gun, a saving is effected in the amount of powder necessary to produce a given force; because of the confinement of the gas which prevents excessive speed of powder combustion, there is lessened recoil of the arm or gun. Preventing the escape of the powder gases in advance of the projectile or projectiles prevents injury to the bore of the gun, arising from the action of small jets of gases which escape at a high temperature, and a high velocity between the projectile and the inside of the bores; since the powder gas is prevented from leaving the gun in advance of the projectile, the powder pressures are consistent, as are the projectile speeds for projectiles of the same weight and shape on the same powder.charge. In the case of rifles, the check assists the projectile in taking and holding the grooves of. the bore, thereby preventing stripping of the projectile by the grooves, with the consequent metallic fouling.

It is obvious that the material of which the gas check is made is not essential since any metal, such as iron, copper, aluminum,

or alloy of any kind may be used, if of suitable thickness, which depends upon the bore of the gun and the amount of powder in the charge; it is equally clear that, in order to facilitate loading, the diameter of the disk or check will be slightly smaller than the bore of the gun in which'it is used, or the shell or cartridge in which it is placed.

In Fig. 3 I have illustrated a check or disk 4 secured to suitable wadding 6 in any desirable manner, the idea being that loading cartridges or guns may, in some instances, be facilitated by inserting the disk and the wad together.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent-:

1. In a cartridge, in combination, ashell, an explosive charge near the bottom of the shell, a shot charge near the top of the shell, a wad at the bottom of the shot charge and a gas check between the wad and the explosive charge, said check consisting of a metal disk having a wide, central recess on the side facing the wad, and an annular approximately-peripheral depression on the other side, and a cylindrical, peripheral flange adapted to engage the gun bore.

2. In a cartridge, in combination, a shell, an explosive charge near the bottomof the shell, a shot charge near the top of the shell, a wad at the bottom of the shot charge and a gas check between the wad and the explosive charge, said check consisting of a metal disk having a wide, central recess on the side facing the wad, and an annular, approximately-peripheral depression on the other side, and a cylindrical, peripheral flange terminating in a free edge at the side of the disk toward the explosive charge, the flange on the side next to the wad being continuous with the body of the disk and forming an annular, approximately-peripheral base engaging the wad, said cylindrical flange being adapted to engage the gun bore upon firing.

3. As a new article of manufacture, a gas check for guns and the like, consisting of a disk of sheet-metal, having on one side a wide, central depression and on the other side an annular, approximately-peripheral depression and adapted to closely engage a gun-bore, the disk having also a peripheral,

cylindrical flange immediately surrounding said annular depression.

4:. As a new article of manufacture, a gas check for guns and the like, consisting of a disk of sheet-metal, having wide, central depression and on the other side an annular, approximately-peripheral depression, the disk having also a peripheral, cylindrical flange surrounding said annular depression, said flange terminating in a free edge at the side of the disk which has said annular depression, said flange at the on one side a opposite side being continuous with the body of the disk and forming an annular, approximately-peripheral base adapted to rest against a projectile charge.

5. As a new article of manufacture a check for guns and the like, consisting of a thin metallic dish-shaped body having outwardly flaring sides and provided with a circumferential cylindrical annular flange extending from said sides in direction of the bottom of the body and terminating in a free edge lying approximately in the plane of the bottom, said flange standing at rightangles to the bottom and forming with the sides an annular V-shaped groove, said body being adapted to be placed wholly within a bore with its flange engaging throughout its length the inner surface of said bore, whereby the said body will be expanded by the exploding gases and the said gases prevented from escaping.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

EVERETT M. SWEELEY.

\Vitnesses:

M. J. SWEELEY, C. H. SPRAGUE. 

